LAFAYETTE, La. – Texas State (9-1, 4-0 Sun Belt) made a statement with its straight-set victory (25-11, 25-21, 25-14) over No. 15 Louisiana (11-1, 5-1 Sun Belt) to open the weekend series on Friday morning at Earl K. Long Gym. With the win, the Bobcats increase their winning streak to six matches and now sit atop the West Division in the Sun Belt Conference.
 
The Bobcats jumped right into gear despite a two-week absence of competition and dominated offensively, hitting .372 (48-13-94) against the nationally-ranked Louisiana club who entered the weekend with a .129 opponent hitting percentage. TXST showed up defensively as well as they finished with eight blocks which marked the fifth consecutive match with five or more blocks, and held La. to zero aces, marking accomplishing that feat for the second time this year (vs. Houston Baptist, Sept. 18).
 
"That was a great start to the series," said head coach Sean Huiet. "We wanted to jump on them early and we did just that. I thought Kenedi [Rutherford] stepped in and had a big day for us. Also, T [Tyeranee Scott] played one of, if not her best match of the season. Now our challenge becomes trying to be better this evening because our goal has been to keep getting better every match."
 
Junior outside hitter Kenedi Rutherford pieced together a solid performance in her first start this season and matched a career-high 11 kills with the Bobcats. She finished with a .429 hitting percentage (11-2-21) and had three digs and one block. Senior middle blocker Tyeranee Scott hit .500 and matched Rutherford's 11 kills on 18 swings with just two errors. Scott also recorded a match-high four blocks, including one solo block, and logged a career-best four digs and. Sophomore outside Lauren Teske rounded out the top hitters for the Bobcats and finished with a season-high .375 behind 10 kills on 24 attacks and just one error. She also finished with nine digs, three blocks (one solo), and one ace. Junior setter Emily DeWalt turned in 42 assists and was one dig shy of a double-double. DeWalt also tallied three kills on three attempts, and had one block. Junior libero Kayla Granado led all players with two of the team's four aces and 12 digs.
 
Louisiana, who entered the weekend as the Sun Belt Conference leader with a .275 hitting percentage, hit just .115 in the match. Sophomore middle blocker Kara Barnes led the team with 11 kills as the Bobcats held the dominant 1-2 punch in senior outside hitter Hali Wisnoskie (8) and junior outside Kelsey Bennnett (3) to 11 kills total. Senior setter Avery Breaux had 21 assists and eight digs, senior libero Hannah Ramirez totaled 11 digs, and junior middle blocker Tia Jade Smith had a team-high four blocks with two solos.
 
The Bobcats are now 19-2 all-time vs. Louisiana and are 6-2 when playing in Lafayette.
 
Set 1
Louisiana struck first, but the Bobcats gained the lead at 3-2 and used a 6-0 run to build a 10-4 lead. After the Bobcats scored four of the next six points, Louisiana used its final timeout of the set with the count at 14-6. It was all Bobcats after that as the visiting team increased their lead to double-digits and won the opening round, 25-11. The Texas State offense dominated with a .560 hitting percentage (15-1-25) and was led by Rutherford's six kills on nine errorless swings (.667).
 
Set 2
The second stanza featured 12 ties but just one lead change. Louisiana had an edge early, but the Bobcats grabbed their first lead at 12-11 and used a 3-0 run to create a 15-12 gap. The Ragin' Cajuns kept fighting however, and both teams were tied at 20 before kills from Scott and Teske put the Bobcats ahead 22-20 to force a Louisiana timeout. The home team did pull within one point, but TXST sealed the match 25-21 with two kills from Scott and another from Rutherford.
 
Set 3
The Ragin' Cajuns scored first for the third consecutive set, but the lead did not last long as the Bobcats led 8-3 when Louisiana called for time behind a 5-0 burst. The run continued on the other side of the timeout after consecutive kills by Scott and a kill from Fitzgerald to force another Ragin' Cajuns timeout with the score at 11-3. Texas State did not let off the gas and Rutherford's 11th kill of the match gave the team its largest lead of the set at 19-9. Texas State closed the frame on a 5-2 run to win it 25-14.
 
UP NEXT
Texas State and Louisiana will end today's doubleheader with a 6 p.m. contest at Earl K. Long Gym.
 
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